I've been using a Logitech Harmony 880 remote for years. My wife loved the simplicity of pressing one button that turned on all the required devices, set the inputs/outputs correctly, etc. She especially liked the "Help" button that would walk through the sequence again if something failed to power on correctly. We had a lady that cleaned our house who liked to listen to the TV while she cleaned. When I got my Home Theater in a Box, she never could get everything turned on or off correctly. The Logitech solved that problem, too.
For those unfamiliar with the remote, you use an application on your PC to configure the settings and customize your remote. You tell the software what components (using the make and model number of your TV, DVR, etc.) you have and then you define the settings for various activities. For example, when I press "Watch a DVD", it starts the DVD players/HTIB and the TV, but does not turn on the DVR. It sets the the TV to the HDMI input for the DVD player and configures the HTIB to play the DVD. There are advanced options if you need, for example, to configure pauses between actions.
I finally had to replace the original remote, because the play button was worn out. It took a lot of force to hit play and made using the DVR features a lot harder than it should be.
I had been dragging my feet, but my wife was fed up with the problem, so I bought a new Logitech Harmony One Universal Remote with Color Touch Screen from Amazon.
So far the new remote is working fine. The settings transferred over easily from the original remote. The new remote is more stylish and has a touch screen. The top is very thin and it helps balance the remote in your hand. I still think I would move the least used buttons to the bottom if I were designing a remote. It is awkward to use one-handed when trying to access those bottom buttons.
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